The American Idol season 15 finale was foreshadowed to be a night filled with old memories and friends- and it did just that. To start off the night was a sentimental intro from President Obama- who managed to take a nonpolitical show and advertise citizen’s voting. Very clever, Mr. Pres. Shortly afterwards, Brian Dunkleman made an unexpected appearance marking satirical comments and presenting the old Seacrest-Dunkleman feud. Additionally, there were dozens of talented singers throughout the entire show with genres mixing from Christian to rock to metal (kinda- sorta- well it was something?) The songs ranged from solos, duets, trios, small groups, and large groups, to the boys versus girls. Thrown in the mix was even nine year old Marley Fletcher from New Orleans that sung beautifully with judge Harry Connick Jr. As they performed, a video tribute was made to local devastation in New Orleans from hurricane Katrina (in the video, a .2 second scene with Ellen was added- how could you NOT include Ellen!?).

Also, and this is off topic, but what was up with ALL the guys having long hair? Obviously I didn’t get the memo that having hair in your face as a guy on stage was the new norm. Besides the actual singing, there were also many unique instruments displayed at the show from the harp to the harmonica. Some of the memorable singers included Jordan Sparks, Jennifer Hudson (who was rocking some purple lipstick!), Carrie Underwood (who sang one of my favorite songs EVER- Something in the Water), Keith Urban, Scotty McCreery, and Jennifer Lopez. Speaking of Jennifer, notice she was practically the only person with such elaborate costumes, plentiful stage dancers, dancing, and a HUGE amount of peacock feathers that managed to distract from her not up to par singing. While different singers performed, I also realized that about half the previous winners were just household names that I didn’t know.

About half-way through the show, another video tribute was shown as a throw-back of the good, the bad, the hilarious, the emotional, the disturbing, and the romantic scenes (I forgot about all the lip-locking!) from past seasons of Idol. One of my favorite parts was the return of the fantastic three original judges: Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, and Simon Cowell (nice chest hair by the way). It wasn’t until about 10 minutes before the end of the show that the final contestants, Trent Harmon and La Porsha Renae, were recognized—with brand new Ford Fusions nonetheless!

As everyone held their breath and Ryan dimmed the lights, the winner of Idol season 15 was announced…. Trent Harmon. This announcement not only shocked me, but also the judges, La Porsha, Trent and his family. I believe Trent even fell to the floor in surprise for a few seconds! After gaining some composure, Trent sang his new single “Falling”. This song was highly emotional (yes… Trent kissed the actual floor). It had everyone in tears including myself.

All in all, Idol did not disappoint and was very satisfactory. Even I, with my short attention span, made it through without fast-forwarding but two or three times. Perhaps the most mind-blowing moment of the entire show was what happened at the very last second. As Ryan closed for the “last” time, he announced “Goodnight America (and as the lights went out)… For Now.”

Media Office Rating: 5/5 stars